This past Saturday, 23 drivers had one mission: win and secure their spot. For two others, the goal was simpler, stay out of trouble and be in position when it mattered most. By the time Daytona’s checkered flag fell, we witnessed a dramatic fight to the finish, contenders needing a perfect night running into trouble before the first stage ended, and a surprise leader emerging after the chaos. This year’s Coke Zero Sugar 400 delivered one of the most thrilling races in recent memory, a sentiment reflected in Jeff Gluck’s Twitter/X poll.
Stage 1
When the green flag waved, Ryan Blaney rolled off from the front row alongside Alex Bowman after Saturday’s qualifying washout. Blaney quickly took command, leading teammate Joey Logano, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, and Daniel Suárez in the opening laps, showing early he might be the driver to beat.
The first caution flew on Lap 12 when veteran Casey Mears, who was making just his second start of the year, cut a tire. The yellow proved timely for William Byron, who had been penalized for an unapproved splitter adjustment. The caution allowed him to serve his pass-through penalty and rejoin the lead lap.
Racing resumed on Lap 16 with Blaney once again leading Logano, but only two laps later the caution returned. Playoff hopeful Tyler Reddick was caught in contact with Todd Gilliland coming out of Turn 4, sending Reddick hard into the inside retaining wall. The incident threatened to derail his postseason hopes, though his 23XI Racing team made extensive repairs to keep the No. 45 McDonald’s Toyota on track.
Back under green at Lap 24, Bubba Wallace surged ahead of Suárez and showed speed before trouble struck again. On Lap 27, Wallace made an aggressive move in the pack and, after a push from Kyle Larson, collided with Logano. The contact triggered a massive crash that eliminated Alex Bowman, another driver fighting for a playoff spot. With Bowman out, Reddick’s playoff berth was effectively secured, as he sat 29 points ahead of the Hendrick driver.
The stage ended with a sprint to the finish. Larson held off the pack to claim the Stage 1 win, padding his playoff cushion heading into the postseason.
Stage 1 Results:
- Kyle Larson – 10 Points + 1 Playoff Point
- Ross Chastain – 9 Points
- Ryan Blaney – 8 Points
- Michael McDowell – 7 Points
- Justin Haley– 6 Points
- Joey Logano – 5 Points
- Michael McDowell – 4 Points
- Ryan Preece – 3 Points
- Chase Briscoe – 2 Points
- Christopher Bell – 1 Point
Stage 2
Before the field took the green to begin Stage 2, most of the leaders came down pit road for tires and fuel. That strategy handed Cody Ware the top spot on Lap 42, a shock to both the field and the industry. The Rick Ware Racing driver, rarely seen at the front, suddenly found himself leading underdog laps that had fans and analysts buzzing about what an upset victory could mean for the playoff picture. Ware’s No. 51 Arby’s Jamocha Shake Ford held strong for 17 laps before Ty Dillon slipped by on Lap 64. Meanwhile, Tyler Reddick’s battered No. 45 McDonald’s Toyota continued to hang tough in the draft, proving just how much superspeedway racing levels the playing field.
The next yellow waved on Lap 83 when Carson Hocevar came to a stop on the backstretch, giving Denny Hamlin the free pass after his earlier involvement in the Lap 27 melee. Racing resumed on Lap 88 with William Byron and Chase Elliott pacing the field for the final eight laps of the stage. But in the closing dash, Ross Chastain powered through to edge Joey Logano and claim the Stage 2 victory.
Stage 2 Results:
- Ross Chastain – 10 Points + 1 Playoff Point
- Christopher Bell – 9 Points
- Joey Logano – 8 Points
- John Hunter Nemechek – 7 Points
- William Byron – 6 Points
- Chase Briscoe– 5 Points
- Ryan Blaney – 4 Points
- Ryan Preece – 3 Points
- Ty Gibbs – 2 Points
- Kyle Larson – 1 Point
Final Stage
Before the final stage began, Ryan Blaney had a slow entry into his pit box after Ross Chastain stopped deep in his own stall, briefly delaying the Team Penske driver. It didn’t derail his night, however. When the green flag waved on Lap 102, John Hunter Nemechek and Christopher Bell battled side by side, while Denny Hamlin’s No. 11 King’s Hawaiian Toyota limped down the frontstretch, bringing out another caution.
With 45 laps to go, last week’s winner Austin Dillon paced the field, but Joey Logano quickly closed in. Chris Buescher, needing a win to make the playoffs, tucked in behind Logano, while Erik Jones kept the pressure on. On Lap 150, Jones tagged Logano coming out of Turn 4, sending the No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford spinning into the tri-oval grass and bringing out another yellow.
The race came down to an eight-lap shootout, with Jones and Justin Haley leading the charge. The pack grew restless, shuffling Jones out as Ryan Preece went door-to-door with Haley before losing momentum. At the white flag, Cole Custer powered to the front, but chaos erupted behind him, three-wide on the backstretch as Blaney charged from 13th to second. Blaney latched onto Custer’s door with a fierce side draft, and as the field fanned four-wide coming to the line, he surged ahead.
Blaney captured his second career Coke Zero Sugar 400 victory, and his first since 2021, cementing himself as the night’s ultimate closer.
Leaving Daytona, the playoff field was officially set. With no surprise winner taking the checkered flag, Alex Bowman secured his spot in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. This year marks the Tucson, Arizona, native’s seventh-career postseason appearance.
“Being in front of it is really about all I could do, unfortunately,” Bowman said after being collected in an early accident. “From where we were, there just really wasn’t any way to get around it. All of the hits just sort of compounded too much to be able to fix it. I hate it for the No. 48 Ally Chevrolet team. We’ve done a lot of good things lately. Tonight is going to be stressful to watch, but we’ll see what happens. Hope for no new winners, but if somebody wins, they deserve it.
“It’s unfortunate that we haven’t won yet this year. We’ve been so strong, especially lately. I would say from Michigan on, it’s been something fun to be a part of. It was all very out of our control tonight. I hate that we tanked so bad the first run, the bottom lane just fell apart behind us. We had to overcome that, but we had gotten back inside the top-10. Unfortunately, it just didn’t work out.”
Erik Jones mounted a strong charge in the closing laps, but the driver of the No. 43 Dollar Tree Toyota came up just short of capturing his second career Daytona victory. Still, the Byron, Michigan, native left the World Center of Racing with plenty of positives to build on.
“We were really good with the #7 (Justin Haley) and then switched there on the restart to start working with the #5 (Kyle Larson),” Jones said. “He was shoving really aggressive, and I got pretty out of shape, that was kind of it. I hate that it ended the way it did. We put ourselves in a good spot, everything was going right to the plan, and we just got out of shape. Glad the car’s in one piece and we finished, but unfortunately, fifth tonight doesn’t do much for us.”
The Round of 16 kicks off Sunday night at Darlington Raceway with the Cook Out Southern 500, the final Crown Jewel race of the season. The green flag is set for 6:00 PM ET (3:00 PM PT) on USA Network. With the playoff field locked in, all 16 contenders will be chasing a flawless start to their championship run. This is one race you won’t want to miss.
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